While in San Antonio last week, I took the plunge and traded my iPhone 5 in for an iPhone 6 Plus. I’m thankful I checked in-store availability, because the North Star Apple Store did not have the 128G version.  That meant we had to trek out to LaCantera, which neither Mr. L nor I like to do. The folks were friendly and did a great job of taking care of me as well as getting me a speedy walk-in appointment for my MacBook Pro (which was eventually diagnosed with a memory problem after intensive loop testing during an overnight stay in the tech department). But we’re talking iPhone today.

I selected a screen protector and an Apple silicone case. I used an Otterbox Defender case on my iPhone 5. Otterbox cases are tremendous, but it bulked my phone up too much for the level of protection I needed for it. With the size of the 6 Plus, I needed to keep the case minimal to still be able to slip the phone into the ruler pocket on my carpenter jeans.

Before heading out to LaCantera, I backed the phone up to iTunes (including passwords). Since the MacBook Pro was with me for a service check, I also brought the MacBook Air.  As I was pulling the Air out to start up for the restore process on the phone, my amazing sales lady had the screen protector and case installed and had put all the extra stuff into a bag for me.

I asked about trading in my iPhone 5, and she walked me through that process (wiping it) after I removed my case. I got $180 in trade for my two year old 32G iPhone 5. (None of my other phones were worth anything when it came time to get a new phone.)

Once the phone restored from iTunes (which, by the way, is much faster than via iCloud), we finished setting it up, and I was on my way.

I’ve had the phone for almost two weeks now, so I’ll share my observations.

• Battery life is tremendous. I’m on my second day without plugging in, and battery life is currently rated at 46%. Usage is 6 hours, 32 minutes and standby is 1 day, 13 hours since last full charge.
• With the new sleep/wake button position on the side, a side effect seems to be changing my volume buttons most of the time when I am trying to press the sleep/wake. Maybe that’s because I’m left handed and hold the phone in my right hand, so I’m trying to press the sleep/wake with my thumb, and it’s awkward, resulting in my fingers drifting up to the volume buttons. (Is it just me? I haven’t read about anyone else commenting on this.)
• I love the larger screen. I’m able to use the phone more easily without my reading glasses, and reading in Kindle is much more pleasant in this format. I would read on my phone before, but it wasn’t a particularly desirable experience. Now, I find myself happily reading for pleasure on the phone.
• I can play my Mahjong game on this screen. It’s best on the iPad, but I can play it on the 6 Plus (it was unplayable on the 5).
• A lot of commentary has been made about the camera lens sticking out of the back of the phone. With Apple’s case (or any similarly sized case), this is a non-issue. Naked iPhones could be a little awkward.
• The iPhone 6 Plus could be an iPad Mini Killer, but I suspect there’s enough room in the market for both devices.
• TouchID is okay. I didn’t want to use a passcode before, because I didn’t want to input a code every time I swiped my screen. TouchID works well on the phone. It’s hit and miss on some apps. Be advised that a passcode must be entered after a restart, so don’t forget your passcode.

Finally, I’m thankful Apple decided to keep the 5C and 5S in the line-up.  Not everyone wants a massive screen, and those devices are superb. I’ve begun to think of them as the Nokia candy bar phone of today.

What did I miss that you were hoping to hear about?  Let me know in comments